Embarkation - Saturday, June 13

Seattle Skyline (Click on any pictures to see a larger version of the picture - larger picture will open in another window)

Yesterday, we flew into Seattle and stayed in the Best Western River's Edge. We found an excellent Caribbean style seafood restaurant, Bahama Breeze, for dinner. And then we used the evening to relax which was much needed after a very long travel day plus we had jumped two time zones and so our bodies thought it was later than it actually was.

The weather today was in the mid 70s and mostly sunny.

Then we got to the Pier (Pier 66) about 11AM to find many people already there checking in. The process to check in was painless. Lines were fairly short and then they had a waiting area to sit until it was time to get on the ship. Fortunately my parents had a suite so we were one of the very first to board. We sailed on the Norwegian Star.

We arrived on the ship and were offered a glass of champagne and my parent's butler showed us to their room where we all left our stuff before heading to find some food. We ate in the main dinning room, Versailles, where the wait staff promptly got to know my little nephew who quickly became the center of attention of many of the service staff. Lunch in Versailles was very relaxing and quiet.

We spent part of the afternoon getting to know the ship and then had the muster drill. The ship left about 4PM and then we got dressed for dinner in the Versailles restaurant. As we had still not really adjusted to the new time zone it was early to bed for us.

Here are a few pictures of the ship:

Norwegian Star

Spinnaker Lounge Pool area on Deck 12 Market Cafe on Deck 12

on Deck 12

Stardust Theater Atrium on Deck 7 Gatsby's Bar on Deck 6

on Decks 6 and 7

At sea - Sunday, June 14

This morning I woke up at about 5:25 and remembered that the Freestyle Daily had mentioned a sunrise of 5:24. So I grabbed my camera and went out on the balcony for some pictures. The sun was already starting to rise but it was still so peaceful and beautiful.

Then I dragged my husband out of bed and went down to the Promenade deck (deck 7) to get some more shots and walk a bit. It was a little chilly and VERY windy on the deck so we needed our warm sweatshirts but it was worth it.

As always I get pretty hungry as soon as I wake up so we went in search of food. The only thing we could find open this early was the buffet in the Market cafe. Unfortunately the selection of food was very limited and the food not very good so we left there very disappointed. At that time we ran into my sister and her family. They were hanging out looking at pictures in the photo gallery waiting for the main dining room to open. We decided to join them and see what breakfast was like in the main dining room (Versailles). We found that it was somewhat better.

The weather today was in the low 60s and sunny.

Today was a relaxing day at sea. I joined my sister and dad for a martini tasting which was a lot of fun. And we previewed some art before the art auction. On board they had original art by Picasso, Joan Miró, Salvador Dali, Thomas Kinkade, and many more.

Tonight was the formal night so we got dressed up, had dinner in Versailles, had pictures taken (including a picture with Captain Lars Bergstrom), and went to the show "The Music of the Night".

Ketchikan, Alaska - Monday, June 15

I was up even earlier (around 4:30) this morning because we set the clocks back another hour. The sun had already risen so I enjoyed some time on my balcony again, waiting for my husband to wake up. Fortunately whenever we arrived early at a port, breakfast was earlier. After finding breakfast we watched them dock the boat around 6:30 this morning.

The weather in Ketchikan today was mid 60s with some light rain showers.

Since, we had no excursions and plenty of time we didn't rush to get off the boat. In Ketchikan we wandered the shops and checked out Creek Street (a really neat shopping district on boardwalks above the river).

Along Creek Street there was also a beautiful cascade. My dad helped me play with some of the settings on my camera to get this neat looking waterfall shot.

We were back on shore for lunch and enjoyed a nice relaxing afternoon. We went to an art seminar on board about Modern Art where Picasso, Dali, and Miró were all showcased. It was a really interesting seminar that gave me a chance to see some more paintings of some of my favorite artists.

Tonight's show was "Magic and Illusion with Shawn Farquhar" which we both really enjoyed.

Here is where we started to see Bald eagles in great numbers and this afternoon we managed to see our first whale off the side of the ship. My only disappointment was that I didn't have the zoom lense on my camera to get a better picture of the whale.

Juneau, Alaska and Glacier - Tuesday, June 16

This morning we arrived in Juneau. The weather was cool (mid 50s) and there was light rain throughout the day. We docked around 6:30 AM and had to be back on board by 1:00 PM.

Juneau is actually located in a rainforest area and gets around 100" of rain a year and around 100" of snow a year although last year they had 180" of snow. Mendenhall Glacier is near Juneau (although we did not go to see it) and the area is surrounded by mountains.

We saw plenty more eagles including one right outside our balcony on the dock. We got off the ship at about 8:00 AM and headed straight towards the Mount Roberts Tramway to get a spectacular view of the area.

After the Tram, we headed to the Capital building and took a tour of the place.

The Capital building is very simple looking compared to Wisconsin or Minnesota's Capital building. The tour we got was very short, partly because many parts of the building were under renovation. We learned about one very infamous governor, John F. A. Strong (from 1913-1918). Partway through his term they learned that he was not from Alaska but instead a Canadian citizen and that he had 2 wives (one in Alaska and one in Canada). It was also very interesting to see that they had a countdown to the end of Sarah Palin's term labeled "Time to Make a Difference."

From the Capital building we took some time to stop and admire some of the cascades in the mountains and the eagles circling right around them. There are five bald eagles in the picture below (click on it to see a larger version of it).

Then we did some shopping before meeting the rest of our family at Tracy's Crab shack for some excellent crab. They served king crab by the leg.

Then it was time to head back on the ship and relax a little before we cruised through the glaciers. Once leaving Juneau, the scenery was just incredible with cascades, small icebergs, snow-capped mountains, and even a little wild life. My husband said he even saw some grizzly bears in the far distance (I missed them because I was sitting in the Endless Summer Restaurant with a different beautiful view doing a margarhita tasting with my sister and her husband). Here are some pictures of the scenery.

The ship was then suppose to go to Tracy Arm to see the Sawyer Glacier however, there was too much ice for the ship to make it safely so instead we went to Endicott Arm where we saw the Dawes Glacier.

Once at Dawes Glacier the boat stopped to allow a tour boat to empty it's passengers onto our boat. I'm not sure if it was people on an excursion from Juneau that were cruising with us or we were helping them out or what.

From there we turned around and headed back out for some more beautiful scenery and a few rainbows and hanging glaciers.

That evening we ordered room service in my parent's room so we didn't have to miss any of the scenery.

Skagway, Alaska - Wednesday, June 17

Today we spent the day in Skagway. The weather was in the mid 50s with some light rain. Skagway really doesn't have much in it to do unless you go on an excursion. We had thought about doing some hiking but with the rain we really didn't want to hike in the mud and it appeared the trails we were most interested in started on the opposite end of Skagway making it a very long walk. So instead we just wandered the town. I don't think we spent more than about an hour in town. My parents went on the train ride and enjoyed it but weren't overly impressed.

This evening's show was titled "Cirque Pacific" and featured China Star Acrobats. I really enjoyed the acrobats but for every 30 seconds of acrobats there was 10 minutes of mediocre dancing. I was not impressed with the dancers on board at all.

Prince Rupert, British Columbia, Canada - Thursday, June 18

This was the morning where I saw a whale right outside the window in the dining room when we were sitting down for breakfast. We didn't get into Prince Rupert until about 4PM and so we enjoyed a day of relaxing. After seeing the whale at breakfast we went up to the Spinnaker lounge hoping to spot more wildlife and had a chance to see some dolphins as well.

Then I learned a few country line dances (unfortunately I couldn't convince my husband to join me). It is always interesting trying to dance and keep your balance on a moving ship. Then we went to an art seminar that covered art from cave drawings to modern art. And in the afternoon we went to a special close up magic show with Shawn Farquhar. They had a camera to project him on a huge screen so we could see him do card tricks and other close up magic tricks. It was really a great show.

In Prince Rupert the weather was in the mid 50s and partly cloudy. We intended to get off the ship right when they announced the ship had been cleared but the line to get off the ship covered several levels and the line outside looked just as long (we had to go through customs since this was Canada). So we waited until the lines died down and then got off.

Prince Rupert has even less to do than Skagway but the bald eagles made up for it. Before we even got off we watched dozens of eagles flying and perched in trees. We also got to see some young eagles (they don't get a pure white head until they are about 5 years old). Then when we got off there we came across an eagle perched not far from the boardwalk eating a fish. And while we were standing there two more eagles joined it (including a young one). It was incredible to see them so up close in the wild.

After walking around town we got back on the ship and had dinner in the Aqua Main Dining room for the first time. It was nice to have a quite dinner with just my husband. Then we headed to Gatsby's Bar and enjoyed some nice music for several hours.

At Sea - Friday, June 19

Today was our last day of the cruise. The weather was in the 50s and partly cloudy. It was a nice relaxing day at sea. I went to the last martini tasting with my sister, her husband, and my dad in the afternoon. I have always enjoyed the huge variety in drinks you can find on cruises. You get to try so many new things.

My sister and her family had plans to go to one of the specialty restaurants leaving my parents and my husband and I to a nice quiet dinner in Versaille. And then it was time to pack.

Just before we went to bed, the sun was setting and I took this beautiful picture.

Disembarkation - Saturday, June 20

This morning we got up early and disembarked about 9AM. We then took a bus to the airport, waited in some very long lines and eventually left Seattle at about 2:15 arriving home sometime around midnight.

Overall, the trip was very relaxing and we saw some beautiful scenery. This was by far the most beautiful cruise I have ever been on. Additionally, since we traveled much of the time through passages and channels with land on both sides it was a very smooth cruise (with the exception of the last day when we were further out sea). As much as I love cruising, I can't always take all the motion well, so this was very welcome for me.